Swiftmailer Sendmail transport arbitrary shell executionGHSA-4qpj-gxxg-jqg4
Fix: swiftmailer/swiftmailer@b4b78afGHSA-4qpj-gxxg-jqg4 is a security vulnerability in swiftmailer/swiftmailer. A fix is available for swiftmailer/swiftmailer — see the affected versions and patch details below.
Real-World Exposure
swiftmailer/swiftmailerReal-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Packagist packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.
Description
Prior to 5.2.1, the sendmail transport (Swift_Transport_SendmailTransport) was vulnerable to an arbitrary shell execution if the "From" header came from a non-trusted source and no "Return-Path" is configured. This has been fixed in 5.2.1. If you are using sendmail as a transport, you are encouraged to upgrade as soon as possible.
Affected Packages
| Ecosystem | Package | Vulnerable range | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🐘Packagist | swiftmailer/swiftmailer | ≥ 4.0.0&&< 5.2.1 | 5.2.1composer require swiftmailer/swiftmailer:^5.2.1 |
Detection & mitigation playbook
Open-source dependencyDetect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for swiftmailer/swiftmailer, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update swiftmailer/swiftmailer to 5.2.1 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-4qpj-gxxg-jqg4 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is GHSA-4qpj-gxxg-jqg4 in your dependencies?
Find it across Packagist, including transitive dependencies.